INTERAZIONE PIANTE-MONUMENTI: L’ESPERIENZA DELLA NECROPOLI “LA BANDITACCIA” (CERVETERI, ROMA)

Archaeological sites represent a refuge for plant and animal species, rich in biodiversity and protected from the pressures of urbanisation. However, sometimes these environmental resources can lead to negative consequences for monuments and vegetation management is a recurrent problem when considering the conservation of historic structures. In order to investigate such contrasting effects of plants growth, we selected the UNESCO World Heritage Site Etruscan necropolis “La Banditaccia” (Cerveteri, Italy). With this goal in mind we performed: floristic and phytosociological analyses, ob- servations on roots interactions with monuments, applied indices to evaluate damages to the structures, and a comparative analysis to assess the influence of interventions on plant colonisation. The study revealed rich biodiversity, differences among vegetation types (as a function of the varying degrees of anthropization) and an ecological gradient among the tumuli. The results of the Impact Index analysis showed that the dynamic evolution of vegetation constitutes a significant risk to the archaeological structures. The acquired knowledge, combined with the evaluation of the potential risk of the different plant communities, can help to identify the best management practices, assuring an equilibrium between monuments and natural values conservation, also considering the effects of the ongoing climate changes